Braselton, Ga., Sept. 29, 2010 – A two-day test at the roller-coaster Road Atlanta circuit has prepared Corvette Racing for Saturday's 1,000-mile/10-hour Petit Le Mans, the ninth and final round of the 2010 American Le Mans Series. After seven victories at Petit Le Mans in the GTS/GT1 division, Corvette Racing is aiming to close out the 2010 campaign with its first GT2 win of the season.

Like its namesake, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the 13th annual Petit Le Mans demands preparation, execution, endurance and strategy. Although rain on Sunday dampened the second day of a scheduled two-day test at the 2.54-mile, 12-turn road course, the Chevrolet team is well prepared for the long day of racing.

"If you look at any performance metric – average lap times, fastest race or qualifying laps, or the fastest race stint – the entire GT2 field has on average improved by almost one percent since 2009, " said Doug Louth, Corvette Racing engineering director. "That is one reason why the GT2 class is super competitive. With continued development of the Corvette C6.R, our lap time performance is right there with the improved performance of our competition. Although there is much less latitude in the GT2 regulations for development than in the old GT1 regulations, there is still much that can be done with systems, settings, parts configurations, and processes to realize performance improvements.

"The Road Atlanta track is obviously very different from Le Mans, with less time spent at maximum speed and much higher loads from the elevation changes, banking, and overall track configuration," Louth noted. "Consequently the chassis setup and tire choices are quite different between Le Mans and Road Atlanta. But the one thing that the two races have in common is that the length of the event provides more opportunity to leverage the team's long-run performance and to develop a winning strategy."

Last year's Petit Le Mans was red-flagged after only four hours and 50 minutes of racing when a deluge descended on Road Atlanta. With the preceding ALMS round at Mosport International Raceway also abbreviated due to guardrail damage, there is unfinished business at Petit Le Mans.

"It was a frustrating end to last year's Petit Le Mans with the downpour," said Oliver Gavin, driver of the No. 4 Compuware Corvette C6.R and a four-time Petit Le Mans class winner. "Everyone was just keeping themselves in the game, staying on the lead lap, and then all of a sudden the rain hit and the race was red flagged. We never got a chance to push in that final few hours and battle to the end.

"This year the GT2 class is massively competitive, and everyone at Corvette Racing is very keen to win this last race," Gavin noted. "We're going to be 150 percent focused on everything that needs to happen to make the race ours. The intensity is as high as Le Mans. The whole ethos of the race is the fact that you're racing in different classes with the best sports car drivers in the world."

The Corvette squad will retain the revised driver lineup that made its debut at Mosport, with Johnny O'Connell, Olivier Beretta, and Antonio Garcia in the No. 3 Compuware Corvette C6.R. Gavin, Jan Magnussen, and Emmanuel Collard will share the No. 4 Compuware Corvette C6.R.

"It's not just about being fast at Petit Le Mans, but about staying out of trouble," said O'Connell, a resident of nearby Flowery Branch, Ga. "The biggest challenge is the difference in speeds among the various classes, and that will become apparent with 45 entries on a relatively short race track. As we saw at Le Mans, when you have factory prototypes slugging it out, the GT cars can be on the receiving end of some overly aggressive driving."

O'Connell will host his annual charity auction at the conclusion of track activities on Friday, October 1, to benefit the Alzheimer’s Association and The Guest House, a senior citizen day care center in Gainesville, Ga. Drivers, teams, and manufacturers have donated memorabilia and merchandise, and O'Connell will play the role of auctioneer. The event has raised more than $200,000 for charity since 2001.

"We'll have some great autographed driver gear, and my daughter, Kelly, will sing a Taylor Swift song," O'Connell said. "There will be some surprises, and if we raise enough money for charity, I'll even sing the heavy metal song I've written. We always have a good time and benefit two outstanding organizations."

Corvette Racing’s next event is Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Ga., the season finale of the 2010 American Le Mans Series. The 1,000-mile/10-hour race will start at 11:15 a.m. ET on Saturday, October 2. The race will be televised live on SPEED starting at 11 a.m. Live radio coverage will be available on American Le Mans Radio, Sirius Channel 127, and XM Channel 242.

I had the the opportunity to catch up with Corvette Racing’s Program Manager Doug Fehan. We spoke about the trials and tribulations of the 2010 season and look ahead to 2011 where the ACO rules will allow paddle shift transmissions. Is Corvette Racing heading down that path? Make the jump and watch our exclusive interview with the Dr. Fehan.

VERY interesting interview Kieth. The new paddle shift rule was by by the most interesting. I’m not really in favor of it, but the great majority of the manufacturers have been using them for years now.

Also I just wanted to let you guys know that Qualifying WILL be shown on Speedtv.com at 3:10pm ET TODAY!

VERY interesting interview Kieth. The new paddle shift rule was by by the most interesting. I’m not really in favor of it, but the great majority of the manufacturers have been using them for years now.

We also heard from Gary Pratt this morning who said they are moving to the paddle shifts. They are also working to get the engine further validated by the ACO to remove the weight penalty. Fehan said it started out at 25 kilos and is now 15. Every little bit helps!

We also heard from Gary Pratt this morning who said they are moving to the paddle shifts. They are also working to get the engine further validated by the ACO to remove the weight penalty. Fehan said it started out at 25 kilos and is now 15. Every little bit helps!

Absolutely. Now the key question that is probably on everyone's mind now, is will the paddle shift transfer to the production car eventually? Only time will tell.

BRASELTON, Ga., Oct. 1, 2010 – Corvette Racing drivers Jan Magnussen and Olivier Beretta qualified sixth and seventh respectively for Saturday's 1,000-mile/10-hour Petit Le Mans, the season finale of the 2010 American Le Mans Series. Today's 25-minute GT qualifying session was held in warm and sunny conditions on the 2.54-mile Road Atlanta circuit. The twin Corvettes were separated by just .077 seconds, with Magnussen qualifying sixth at 1:20.598 in the No. 4 Compuware Corvette C6.R, and Beretta close behind in seventh at 1:20.675 in the No. 3 Compuware Corvette C6.R.

Jaime Melo led a quartet of Ferraris in GT2 qualifying with a pole-winning time of 1:19.889. The No. 90 BMW was fifth, and the No. 45 Porsche eighth among the 17 entries in the hotly contested production-based class.

Both Corvettes went out as soon as the green flag signaled the start of the 25-minute GT qualifying session. Magnussen clocked his quickest time on his fifth lap, while Beretta's best lap was his eighth. The two Corvettes pitted briefly, then took the unusual step of going back out in pursuit of quicker times, but neither driver was able to improve on subsequent laps.

"It was difficult to get clear laps," Magnussen said. "The Ferraris backed up on the laps when I should have had fast lap times, and that messed up my qualifying run a little. When I finally did get a clear lap, the tires were just past their peak.

"I'm quite pleased with the car, and everything worked well," Magnussen reported. "It's just a shame that we couldn't show its full potential, so we'll do that tomorrow in the race."

Beretta made a dozen laps before the conclusion of qualifying. "After I did my good lap, I wanted to improve it," Beretta said. "That was my time to go, but I had traffic in front of me and had to slow down. Then I tried again, but it is never the same.

"The race will be long, and we have to work hard tomorrow," Beretta added. "The two Corvettes are close on lap times, and I think we will be strong in the race. We are still a long way from the end."

The 1,000-mile/10-hour Petit Le Mans, the season finale of the 2010 American Le Mans Series, will start at 11:30 a.m. ET on Saturday, October 2, at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Ga. The race will be televised live on SPEED starting at 11 a.m. ET. Live radio coverage will be available on American Le Mans Radio, Sirius Channel 127, and XM Channel 242.

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